Tag Archives: The Night Ministry

I did GED tutoring with two of the night Ministry youth while I was volunteering. We would meet at one in the morning after my shift on the bus, or on the weekends at the youth shelter. Both kids eventually got back on their feet, one returning home to the east coast and one getting into a Job Training program in Joliet.

MYTH: Homeless youth don’t care about getting an education – they just want to have fun.

FACT: Homelessness presents many challenges for young adults trying to go to school. It is difficult to put energy and effort toward studying when all of a young person’s energy is focused on finding a safe place to sleep at night. The Night Ministry’s youth shelter programs prioritize connecting youth with educational opportunities. In 2011, 50% of youth in our 120-day Interim Program were employed or attending an educational program at the time that they left the shelter. Additionally, 70% of our young mothers at RAPPP reached their educational goals before leaving the program.

Like this:

There was always a nurse on the Night Ministry Bus when I volunteered with them. And the nurses were kept busy all night long. We also had materials and information about shelters people could go to or agencies that could help them find temporary housing or search for jobs. We did our part to promote safe sex as well. with a well stocked supply of condoms, advice on how to use them, and periodic testing opportunities for STDs.

MYTH: The Night Ministry is like a mobile soup kitchen – it just gives free food and handouts to the homeless.

FACT: Often, the homeless and precariously housed are forced to choose between food, housing, and medical care. The Night Ministry relieves clients from having to choose between these basic needs. In 2011, in addition to providing 80,000 meals to clients, our Health Outreach Program provided 1,551 health assessments, 722 HIV tests, and 274 acute medical treatments.

Like this:

I try to reflect this fact in Painted Black. Lexie was kicked out because her mother found the girl being molested and chose to blame the 12-year-old and not the grown man. Chris voluntarily left home, but his intentions were to make things easier on his single parent mother. Even then, however, he would go home in a heartbeat if only his Mom would ask him to.

MYTH: Youth choose to run away from home, so becoming homeless is their own fault.

FACT: Disruptive family conditions such as physical/sexual abuse and parental neglect are the primary reason that young people leave home. In one study, more than half of the youth interviewed during shelter stays reported that their parents either told them to leave or knew they were leaving and did not care(1). In another study, 46% of runaway and homeless youth had been physically abused and 17% were forced into unwanted sexual activity by a family or household member (2). Some youth may become homeless when their families suffer financial crises. These youth become homeless with their families, but are later separated from them by shelter rules, transitional housing, or child welfare policies(3). Finally, many adopted youth are forced to leave their homes when they turn 18 – this is when the benefits their adoptive parents receive stop.

I can attest to the fact below, having taught a writing workshop when I volunteered for their youth shelter. People may think feeding them sandwiches is just making it easier for the kids to stay on the streets, but what it really does is promote trust so that you can move on to providing much more than food and services.

MYTH: Social service agencies such as The Night Ministry teach homeless individuals how to “live off the system,” not how to live independent of welfare and other state-provided funds.

FACT: Our staff works hard to connect clients to job training and educational programs, which ultimately lead to an independent life. Youth at The Night Ministry’s shelter programs participate in life skill groups that help teach them the skills necessary to live independent, successful lives. These groups include classes on cooking, parenting, resume writing and job skills, financial literacy, and healthy relationships. When youth leave our programs, our aftercare workers maintain relationships with them to help guide them to an independent life.

What the Hell?

Chicago, freeze-dried bodies, kids sleeping on the streets. That's what this blog is about. What's what my novel is about. Dark urban graffiti, hard rock music and doing what you gotta do to survive. Small glimpses of the novel mix with snapshots from real life. You tell me which posts are real and which are fiction. If you can.